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- HP Community
- Desktops
- Desktop Boot and Lockup
- Re: Repiring Disk Errors

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11-06-2020 09:39 AM
My computer has been stuck on preparing automatic repair and then a screen popped up that said "automatic repair couldn't repair your pc". Is there something I can do to access my files or extract them? I'm a student and I need to have access to those files.
11-07-2020 10:20 AM
You have a couple of different options for retrieving your files.
First, since your PC won't boot into Windows, you could create your own WinRE boot media, boot using that, and copy the files you need to a USB stick to use on a different PC. (more on this below)
Second, you could remove your drive from your PC and connect it to another PC using an adapter -- and then use that PC to retrieve the files. If your drive is a SATA drive, the adapter looks like this:
If your PC can not boot into Windows, a way around that is to follow the instructions below to create boot media from Macrium Reflect (MR) that can be used to boot your PC even if the hard drive is not working:
1) Download and install Macrium Reflect (MR) from this link: http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx
2) Use the option to create a boot USB stick or CD
That will create MR bootable media. Then, you can boot your PC into WinPE using that media.
Have patience, as that can take a while to start and bring up the screen.
Once the screen is there, read this thread about using PE Explorer -- a simple file explorer: https://forum.macrium.com/PrintTopic15803.aspx
If your disk still works, you might be then able to retrieve some files and folders from it.
I am a volunteer and I do not work for, nor represent, HP